i love "rocky." it's a great film and he wrote it. this young sylvester stallone. some sequels got a little out there for me. my boys love them. this boy does too. bill: breaking eggs is classic. yo, adrienne. martha: bye, everybody, have a great day. >> breaking news on today's top headlines and brand new stories you will see here first. jon: new island just born. where it is and how it came to be. plus a woman on trial accused of enlisting her brother and son to murder her soon-to-be ex-husband. the guy is still alive and testifying against her. uncomfortable. one of these cars could be yours. they're up for auction if you've got the bucks, you can get the car, and it is all "happening now."

jon: good morn being, to you on this thursday. i'm jon scott. >> i'm patti ann browne in for jenna lee. we have new developments concerning the troubled obamacare rollout to tell you about. jon: fox news learned the white house feared the website would not work. internal emails reveal senior technical advisors warned the administration days before launch that the site could crash. though it is still having problems, "the new york times" reports a glimmer of hope. navigators say they have seen major improvement in the online application process. "the washington post" though points at that millions of americans looking for coverage under obamacare will not have access to some of our nation's best hospitals. they're being excluded from many of the plans to keep costs low. in meantime house republicans are hearing the concerns of their constituents. we are awaiting a google hankout set to get underway later in the hour. let's talk about it all with

nina easton, senior editor and columnist for "fortune" magazine and fox news contributor. now we know, there were warnings like from henry chao, the guy tasked with getting the white house assembled, he was telling the white house days before launch this thing could crash and we have to find a way to make it palatable. to make the problems palatable. why did the white house insist rolling it out on october the 1st? >> we have to be cautious taking emails. we don't know what context they were in. you're right, there was concern if it crashed the press would make a big deal about it. this follows on by the way, jon, a mckenzie report last march which showed there were concerns about the design was still evolving. requirements were still evolving. it showed a kind of fly-by-night, seat of your pants kind of operation. so why did they go forward with it? political. they were determined not to give in to republicans, not to give

in to calls for delay and to go no matter what. jon: here's, here's the phrase from henry chao he wrote to the development team. can you think about a better way to convey to the public when the site is not available? i'm picture being in my mind all the major print and online publications taking screen shots of what is below and just ramping up the hyperbole about hc.gov not being functional. seems like they had plenty of concerns but rolled it out anyway. president obama is essentially blaming republicans for the rocky start of obamacare. what do you make of that? >> of course he is blaming republicans and he also will be blaming the insurance industry because he went back and said you can actually, now that you can keep your insurance policy, all policies that were canceled. the insurance industry is saying we can't really do that necessarily. so he can blame insurance industry as well.

can blame state commissioners, can blame everybody but himself. he did a big mea culpa last week. at end of the day it is not clear where the buck stops. what comes across, particularly in that mckenzie report last march there is no clear person in charge calling the shots. no clear line of responsibility. that is just not something you would see in the private sector. jon: but you think back to the days and hours that led up to the government shutdown, republicans were saying, hey, we'll fund the government. we just want to delete money for obamacare. or, how about we delay it for a year and that did not pass muster. >> what is interesting, it would have been in the white house's interest to delay. even after it came, let's say it came out with all the problems. if he shut it down, and did a reboot and a restart several months later, they probably would be better shape than they're in now. what we're hearing now. we're having all the emails come

out. we're having people still having trouble signing up on the website. and, as you alluded to in the beginning here we're finding out that people can't necessarily get the best care. sick patients can't get into the best hospitals. jon: right. >> under obamacare. that's, i mean that's a life and death issue. jon: i was just about to bring that up with you. "the washington post", big story today about how, for instance, seattle childrens' hospital, appendectomy there costs more than it does than at a community hospital. so the big health care insurer up there has decided to exclude seattle children's and people are fuming. health care is not, it is not a hardware store. a bolt is a bolt maybe from one store to another but not necessarily a doctor and a operating room. >> that is the problem with this one size fits all. this is a life and death question. yes, they're trying to contain costs so they're just including

hospitals and systems where the price is right. i understand that. but in cases like the seattle children's hospital, the prices higher because they're treating sick children, who have an underlying issue already. they may, a child who might have tonsillitis but who also has cancer. that is a reason behind that. that is the problem when you get into the one size fits all. we have stories of people losing their insurance all together who are fighting cancer, stage four cancer victims. these are real people and real illnesses. jon: well, and the white house is defending the program so far. they were out yesterday with some information saying they have been able to push down the costs of health care. if this is how they're doing it, that is not going to satisfy many people. >> this is, i mean this is a disaster. you know, political disaster for the president because not only are people losing insurance, sick people are not getting the kind of quality care.

and it all goes back to this promise that he made to us. don't worry, it will not affect you. it will not affect quality of care. you will not lose your insurance. goes back to a fundamental commitment that he made to the american people. jon: yeah, that sound bite has certainly been played and republicans are saying it is going to be a huge issue in the elections coming up less than a year from now. nina easton from fortune magazine. thank you. >> thank thank you,. >> right now there are eight legislative days left in 2013 and no budget deal. house minority leader nancy pelosi commenting on that a short time ago. >> time's awasting, the clock is ticking and this is the republican agenda for 2014. you think that is funny? an agenda that is nothing? >> we're awaiting house speaker john boehner. he is set to speak shortly. jon: also janet yellen is one

step closer to becoming the next chairman of the federal reserve. the senate banking committee voting moments ago to send her nomination to the floor by a 14-8 vote. >> i move that the committee approve favorably the nomination of honorable janet yellen to be chairman of the board of governors of the federal reserve system. the ayes have it. the nomination is hereby reported favorably to the full senate. jon: well the full senate is expected to confirm yellen's nomination. there she is. but the timing of that vote still a little bit on clear. some republicans have promised to delay it as leverage on some other issues. if confirmed, janet yellen would be the first woman to serve as fed chair. >> the need for change is so very, very obvious. it's clearly visible. it's manifest we have to do something to change things. in the history of our country,

some 230-plus years, there have been 168 filibusters of executive and judicial nominations. half of them have occurred during the obama administration. mr. president, 230 plus years. 50%. >> is it about to get nuclear in the u.s. senate? well that was majority leader harry reid on the senate floor just moments ago complaining about republicans endless use of the filibuster on executive branch appointments and judicial nominations. a filibuster is a procedural move that lets a member extend discussion long enough to delay or even stop a proposal. right now it takes 60 votes in the senate to end a filibuster. reid wants to change that to a simple majority, 51 votes. changing rules can be risky. it could be hurt democrats the next time they become minority. even if they approve the change

it could set off a battle for the gop. senate minority leader mitch mcconnell, saying that the democrats are just trying to change the subject of the botched rollout of obamacare. stand by. we have more of that coming up. jon: what a story today. new info on alex rodriguez's fight to play baseball in 2014. the yankee slugger is trying to an historic 211-game ban on allegations of doping. his hearing dramatic after arbitration hearing yesterday. rick leventhal joins us here in the studio. >> reporter: a-rod slammed the table, cursed at baseball's arbitrator and stormed out of the hearing in the third week saying if baseball's commissioner won't testify, he won't either. he went on the radio to deny using performance-enhancing drugs past few years. he made the same flat denial to katy couric on "60 minutes" six years ago and only to have lied to have used peds earlier in

his career. he is charged with on justing the investigation into the biogenesis case. biogenesis was run by anthony bosh who was sued by major league baseball when evidence surfaced he was supplying peds to number of players including melky cabrera, and a-rod. braun was suspended for 65 games. none of them al appealed except for a-rod. he says the real villain is baseball commissioner bud seal leg. he tried to get selig to testify at hearing and stormed out yesterday when the arbitrator ruled against him. >> this is 100% personal. this is about my legacy and trying to destroy me. and retiring 2014 to put me in his big man tell on the way out that is a one hell after big trophy. >> reporter: he says baseball doesn't have right to dictate how the case will proceed and. today's antics are on obvious

attempt to justify mr. rodriguez's continuing refusal to testify under oath. a number of sportswriters are suggesting a-rod and lawyers are appealing to the court of public opinion and hoping for better luck with a federal judge because a-rod is suing baseball and commissioner accusing them of a witch hundred. this hearing continues today with a-rod's lawyers but not with a-rod. jon: swing and a miss. >> reporter: perhaps. jon: rick leventhal. thank you. >> we'll have more on that with our legal panel later on. jon: we sure will. coming up the legal panel takes up the case and whether he hurt or helped his chances of getting that 211-game ban overturned. hmmm. >> well an erupting volcano changes earth as we know it. what it's leaving behind sea. a congressman take as leave of absence after pleading guilty to drug charges. we'll have the latest on trey radal.

patti ann: right now, some new info on story's we're watching around the world. a volcano erupts off the coast of japan and cause as small island to rise from the sea. it is not clear whether or not it will remain there. there ar report that is a korean war veteran is now being held in north korea. the son of 85-year-old merrill newman says his father was taken off a plane last month as he was trying to leave the country. his traveling companion was allowed to continue on. the trial begins in the u.k. for two men accused of running down a british soldier with a car and hacking him to death in broad daylight as on lookers looked on in horror. they are nigerian descent and converting to islam. jon: congressman trey radal is

taking absence from congress and he pleaded guilty to cocaine charges and admits he has an at diction problem. >> i'm not sitting here to make excuses for anything i have done. i have let down our country. i've let down our constituents and i've let down my family. jon: peter doocy has details from washington. how long will raid dell be out of congress, peter rate del? >> reporter: stood to long. he is expecting them back to his desk in the longworth house office building after the winter recess. a look at the calendar that the house will gavel back in after the holidays january 7th. until then the congressman says he will concentrate on cleaning up. >> i will be going into treatment and i will start with intensive, in-patient treatment. that is what is next for me. i have already begun the process. i, look, sometimes in life you

need a wake-up call. this is my wake-up call. >> reporter: radel was rounded up in a big drug trafficking investigation. authorities caught him red-handed buying $260 worth of cocaine in dupont circle from an under cover officer. that was on october 29th, after living in d.c. for only 10 months, one year is the length of the congressman's probation. since he is a first-time offender the court could drop the case if radel stays out of trouble. jon? jon: what about the republican leadership in the house. are they telling him he ought to get out? >> not yet, jon. we know congressman radel sat down with speaker boehner on tuesday to give him a head's up about his arrest that was exactly three weeks earlier. now the speaker's office has a statement out, simply, quote, members of congress should be held to the highest standards and this alleged crime will be handled by the courts. beyond that this is between radel, his family and his constituents. there are some democrats like

house minority leader nancy pelosi basically calling radel inconsistent because he did vote for a measure that would require drug testing for people on food stamps. jon, there is also a possibility of a house ethics investigation. back to you. jon: peter doocy, keep an eye on it for us. peter, thank you. patti ann: new talks over iran's nuclear program. we'll have the latest in the negotiations to put a stop to the islamic republic's ability to develop a nuclear weapon. we'll tell you if any progress is being made. plus a horrifying ordeal in a flooded river and it is all caught on tape. what happened when soldiers tried to save this suv from being swept away by the water. [screaming]

patti ann: right now critical talks are going on over iran's nuclear program. representatives of six world powers and iran meeting in geneva are trying to reach an treatment that would curb the rogue nation's nuclear program. secretary of state john kerry said all sides are closer to a tentative deal than they have been in a long time. fred slice, is a joining us. >> good to see you, patti ann. patti ann: prime minister benjamin netanyahu said the six-month plan being discussed in geneva is exceedingly bad deal. sanctions are working. iran is almost paralyzed and premature to ease the scene shuns as proposed when iran has not dismantled one single centrifuge. six senators from both sides of the aisle are urging to reject the deal. is netanyahu right is this a bad

deal? >> i share netanyahu's concern. there is letter from senator graham, signed by a bipartisan group of senators, another lert by senator kirk. this will leave them to reactor grade which is only slightly less dangerous than uranium enriched to the 20% level and probably would allow iran to make at least five nuclear weapons right now. patti ann: verification of course remains a big concern. vice president biden says the proposed deal calls for intrusive monitoring in his word by international inspectors to insurer ran is halting enrichment and removing already enriched material as well as dismantling those centrifuges. netanyahu says proof is so important. we just can't take iran at its word. is it even possible to verify or iran already too much time to relocate and hide its efforts? >> iran seems very good at covert nuclear facilities. there was a report just this week there may be another facility that iran is denying.

i think there is also the concern that so much uranium has been enriched to date, it won't be that difficult to use a covert facility to enrich it to weapons-grade. patti ann: well iran's supreme leader, meanwhile, ayatollah alico men any said quote, israeli officials can not be called humans. they are like animals, some of them. what kind of impact does it have on the diplomatic process going on? >> there was a lot of extreme and viciously evil rhetoric by khomeni. this only shows far the iranians are prepared to go. they were on the verge of what netanyahu called the deal of the century two weeks ago. i think iranians are worried that the deal might be slipping away. i actually don't think it will. i think a bad deal is in the offing but the iranians are trying to get the best deal they can. patti ann: meanwhile netanyahu is saying without what he calls a genuine deal, he says, as he said many times, israel reserves the right to defend itself against any threat.

president obama, also saying that the military option remains on the table if diplomacy fails. do you feel it will come to that? >> i think it will be difficult for israel to take out the iranian nuclear program. they may be able to set it back for a couple of years but, we have to look what's going on here. we now have a breach in relations between the united states and saudi arabia because of the direction of the talks with iran and other american policies. prime minister netanyahu is infuriated at these talks. this is not advancing stability in the middle east. patti ann: so, lastly these suicide bombings in beirut at the iranian embassy any impact on the talks? >> i think that those boomings are interesting because they show there are elements in the middle east who are very upset at iran's support for what is going on in syria but i'm not sure they're going to affect the talks. patti ann: all right, fred, thanks so much for joining us. >> thank you. jon: well the questions continue about the political fallout

surrounding obamacare. next, we will take a look at the strategy republicans are using to try to take note of the botched rollout. plus, the first high-end auto auction to hit new york city in more than a decade. the cars up for sale are really something special. we have a sneak-peek at some hot wheels coming up. okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu.

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patti ann: right now a quick look at what's still to come on "happening now." a terrifying rescue mission goes terribly wrong. we have dramatic video of soldiers literally being swept away. the video and the story coming up. plus a husband and his estranged wife come face-to-face in court of the prosecutors say he was the target of her murder-for-hire plot. they but do they have the evidence to convince the jury. our legal panel weighs in. do you have a couple million laying around? there are high-end cars on the auction block today. we'll show you them coming up. jon: new information on the gop response to the president's health care law. republicans have been talking about the botched rollout of the website, questioning whether patients personal information is secure and expressing concerns about the increased costs they see in all of this. today "the new york times" took

a look at republicans organized strategy which has house members sharing stories from constituents who ran into big props with the affordable care act. so let's talk about all this with angela mcglowan. she is a fox news political analyst. it has been i guess a bounty of material would work with. you have the fact that the website basically doesn't work. >> right. jon: states like oregon have enrolled nobody. you have the president's, you can keep your doctor pledge which turns out to be untrue. >> yes. jon: you have five million people who have gotten cancellation notices about their health insurance policies. and that might just be the tip of the iceberg in terms of numbers. there is plenty for republicans to criticize here. >> there is plenty for republicans to criticize and look, the obamacare debacle is the gift that keeps on giving however the messaging has to be a winning strategy. we have to do advocacy,

coalition building. people want solutions. it is one thing to do negative campaigning. it is another thing to do negative attack ads. what can this party do to create a better ame more prosperous america. not just an answer to the health care law. what do you dealing with jobs? jon, the economy is anemic and people want answers. jon: republicans only control one house of the u.s. congress. >> yes, the guy who leads the party on the senate side was talking about this morning. let me play you what some of what mitch mcconnell had to say. >> they believe that one set of rules should apply to them, to them, and another set to everybody else. he may have just as well-said, if you like the rules of the senate you can keep them. [laughter] huh? if you like the rules of the senate, you can keep them. rather than learn from past

precedents, on judicial nominations, they themselves set, democrats now want to set another one. now i have no doubt that if they do, they will come to regret that one as well. jon: mitch mcconnell there talking about democratic proposal to change the rules of the senate to make it easier for, whichever party holds the majority, no matter how slim that majority is, to pass law, or to pass bills through the senate. >> i have all the respect in the world for mitch mcconnell and he is great leader this is what liberals do. their message is simple and it is concise and it is not a party of division. liberals are great communicators. we as republicans get caught up in the weeds of policy. what we need to do is go out there and break it down in layman's terms to the common man. i really believe, jon, that the gop has a grand opportunity to bring the youth vote together, women, blacks and latinos because these were folks that supported democratic agenda.

that supported this president and they have been left behind. we can pick them up but we need a simple message. jon: for instance, we've been running a story about colleges like bowie state university in maryland. all those students are finding out that their health care plan has been canceled. or if they want one it will cost them way more than it used to because the plan they used to have doesn't meet the standard of obamacare. >> i think they have buyers remorse not only dealing with health care. a lot of folks staying at home. they have a college degree, can't find a job. not saying that bartending or waiting tables is not a job of integrity, people with degrees in psychology or political science they're not finding jobs they want. i believe republicans should take a page out of newt gingrich's contract with america, when the republicans took over the house and senate. they have to come up with some type of a pledge, some type of a promise. not only a promise what they do to keith a better america but will work with democrats. jon: you haven't heard the

president talk this lately in connection with health care because he has had a lot of other questions to answer but he is fond of saying, if republicans have a better plan, why haven't they presented it. he says they haven't presented anything. >> we had several proposals from medical savings accounts, to tax credits, simple message. it is not going to work for the president now to say the gop, they have done everything to have health care fail. jon: he says they're part of the reason for the failure of the rollout. >> but this is just his signature. but again negative campaigning works for liberals but for conservatives, we can't talk about the president's failure, but what are we going to do that's better? jon: you think republicans need to do more than criticize the rollout of obamacare? >> because people are tired of negative campaigning and people criticizing other people's policies. the president is right, what will conservatives do. attack my policy. what are you doing that is better? we haven't presented that in concise way. jon: when the president comes out and says, okay, if you like

your health care plan you really can keep it after all, don't people say, oh, that's great? >> they say that's great but are they keeping it? over five million people have lost theirs. that is great commercial but we need to do grassroots advocacy, get-out-the-vote, build coalitions. social networkings. we need the technology of today, rnc, senatorial committee, need to start, obama and democrats are famous for social networking and twitter. we're not. jon: that's why so many people can't understand why this website doesn't work because the president is master of technology. >> great point. great point. jon: angela, thank you. >> thank you, jon. jon: patti ann. patti ann: reknowned auction house sotheby's kicking off its first car auction in 10 years. some of these automobiles are works of art. jenna lee got a sneak-peek. let's look. >> today we have something really special to show you on "happening now," a few weeks on the program we talked about the car auction in nebraska where 50

classic cars were auctioned off for a total of $500,000. today, we have how the other half lives. where one classic car is being auctioned off for a starting bid of $500,000. come on. ♪ there are 34 cars in this check shun. we wanted to focus a little bit on the american cars, the cars with an american story. tell me a a a little bit about s lincoln. >> you picked a good american car. this is a one-off design. this interior has great design elements including totally hidden dashboard. that piece of metal actually raises up and covers the, all of the instrumentation inside of the car. >> can you plug in a cell phone charger into that? >> no. but i can actually adapt one. >> you really can?

>> we can make anything work for pretty much anyone. >> how does it drive? >> it's big, say that. it drives great. these are old cars. they have sensitivities to them, shall we say. >> starting bids for this? >> i anticipate this to go somewhere around $2 million. ♪ what. >> what is the backstory of this cadillac? >> this is duke and duchess of windsor's car. >> can i get in there? >> sure. >> i will try that one out. >> obviously with these types of cars you were set back. so when you lean back, not everybody on the outside could see who is in the car. >> i love that. let's get the full effect. >> okay. >> so you could be talking to friend and fans and suddenly -- so much more discretion in those days. [cash register ringing] >> i wanted to see the most

expensive car. you're telling me this, out of all the cars over there, all of the vanity set and everything else, this is the most expensive car in the auction? >> it is. >> why? what is it? >> it is a 1964 ferrerly 260 lm. >> what do you think it will go for? >> our presale estimate is 12 to $14 million. but we wouldn't be surprised if it sold more than that. >> how does this belong in the auction? 2 doesn't look like the right size. >> this is the ferrari 250 lm micro cars. >> is this for kids? >> no. for full-sized adults. >> actually kind of like it. ♪ >> there is no blind spot. >> that is true. there is no blind spot. you never have to worry about a parking space. there is enough room for a handbag. cuts down on clutter. jon: that is the car i like, for parking in new york city? patti ann: yes. jon: that is perfect. patti ann: the smaller the

better. big is out, right? jon: that's right. you wouldn't get some of those big cadillacs in this town. patti ann: looks like a fun story to see those. jon: if only we had money to bid on them? patti ann: exactly. jon: here's a story for you. a murder-for-hire plot involving a entire family. the latest in the trial of a woman accused of enlisting her brother and her son in a conspiracy to kill her husband. yikes! [shouting] several men caught on tape here, trying to pull an suv out of a flood flood river. when the rescue mission goes very wrong. [screaming]

jon: some dramatic video now showing two men swept away by a fast-moving river while trying to rescue an suv. it happened in bolivia. the river was swollen because of

flooding. you can hear people screaming as several soldiers try to prevent the military chief's car from being swept away by the current. two of them lost control, lost their grip and ended up drowning. their bodies were found nearly 10 miles from where they first jumped in. patti ann: "happening now,", new questions about a-rod's future in baseball a day after the yankee slugger stormed out of his own arbitration hearing. he was appealing his 211-i game ban following doping allegations. not long after his dramatic departure from the the hearing he took his fight to the radio blasting mlb commissioner bug selig for not testifying and denying publicly that he ever took performance-enhancing drugs. joining us dan schorr, a former prosecutor and heather hansen, former trial attorney. thanks for joining us. he is appealing the ban at the arcarc trading hearing at mlb headquarters. he punched a wall, kicked a

briefcase and announced this is f-ing bs and used real words before he stormed out. dan, did any of this do any favors? >> whether you're in court of law or arbitration hearing throwing a tantrum is never good idea. it will never help you. he is upset that bud selig the commissioner, won't testify. that is like a criminal defendant in new york city wanting a district attorney to he have or federal defendant wanting the u.s. attorney general to testify. unless bud selig has material evidence if he witnessed or interviewed a witness or something relevant to the chriscase other than that there is no reason for bud selig to testify. a-rod is doing this as public relations tactic, not necessarily as a legal tactic. patti ann: heather, as dan said, he is angry selig is not appearing at the hearing. major laying baseball was represented by the chief operating officer, rob manfred. selig never testifies at these things. the real problem here is that

a-rod will not testify under oath. what about that? >> i think a-rod never intended to testify under oath and this is excuse for him not to testify. he has given up on this case. he has given up on the arbitration. he has a case in state court that will soon be transferred to federal court where hopes to really purity issue. he faced a fact he will not be happy with the result. so he is willing to sort of throw everything to the wind and act like a baby. patti ann: dan, he is throwing it to the court of public opinion. right after this i went on a popular sports radio station, wfan and told mike francesa that he didn't take performance-enhancing drugs. rick leventhal was on earlier pointed out that he made this denial earlier and later said he did use them earlier in the year. why a new detail and on a radio station and not under oath? >> first time he made public denial about specific allegations of this drug use. this is not under oath. if he said it under oath and came out he wasn't telling the

truth he could be criminally prosecuted here. this is a public relations tactic. we've seen other athletes such as ryan braun of milwaukee brewers give the public, very firm statement that is they never used performance-enhancing drugs and turns out not to be true. his statement is suspect. he walked out of a hearing where he had the opportunity to present evidence. right now it is his legacy and pub opinion, not necessarily how many games he is suspended for because the arbitrator will suspend him if not close to or all of the 211 games that baseball wants him to be suspended for. patti ann: moving on to the next topic a trial is underway for a las vegas woman in a botched plot to murder her husband. prosecutors say she hired her brother and her son to kill him to collect on his life insurance policy the shot 11 days before the divorce was finalized. she is accused of having her brother around 22-year-old son shoot her husband as he drove on

a highway near las vegas. her husband, robert bessie was shot in the neck. that the shots came from a gold suv. heather, there is gas station video showing the brother, richard pierson and son, michael bessie. in a gold suv. how strong is the case? >> the case against the brother and son. they have video of a gas station request them in similar su have. the case against her is not as strong. she in the case for conspiracy. that she helped plan it and initiated the plan to kill her husband. there is no direct evidence that we've seen thus far that she actually did some there is text message to her from the brother said, i love it when a plan comes together. that is not her initiating the text messages. this will be a difficult case to prove bense her. patti ann: right. dan, the brother and son are being tried separately. the motive for amy pierson would

be the life insurance policy the divorce was not yet final. policy had not been changed so she stands to make money if the killing came through before the divorce. is motive enough to convict somebody without enough direct evidence? >> motive is not enough. motive is certainly important. sheer she has the motive because she stands to gain money if this murder is carried out. she has the opportunity because looks like her brother and her son were probably involved in this murder. as heather said, you have to show affirmative act on her part. not just receiving a text message showing she was actually a farther of this conspiracy, part of this planning. we're early in the trial, it is possible and i would expect more evidence to be presented by the prosecution. it will be tough based on what we know now to gain a conviction. patti ann: dan schorr, heather hansen, thanks to you both for joining us. >> thank you. jon: controversial call out of florida. two teenagers are off the hook now because the state is dropping charges against them for bullying a classmate who later committed suicide.

this has been a very controversial case. we'll tell you why the state made this decision. ♪ ho ho ho [ female ans, not all food choices add up. some are giant. some not so giant. when managing your weight, bigger is always better. ♪ ho ho ho ♪ green giant you really love, what would you do?" ♪ [ woman ] i'd be a writer. [ man ] i'd be a baker. [ woman ] i wanna be a pie maker. [ man ] i wanna be a pilot. [ woman ] i'd be an architect. what if i told you someone could pay you and what if that person were you? ♪ when you think about it, isn't that what retirement should be, paying ourselves to do what we love?

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patti ann: new information on a bullying case that shocked the whole country. the state of florida dropping all charges against two teens who were accused of stalking and bullying a classmate who later committed suicide. steve harrigan has the details now from miami. hi, steve. how did this happen? >> reporter: patti ann, the charges of aggravated stalking have been dropped by the state and there are accusations from attorneys for the two teenage germs that the sheriff might have overstepped his bound. it's no question that sheriff grady judd of polk county has been very aggressive and public in pursuing this case, trotting out both the names of the 13 and

14-year-old girls who were accused of stalking and their oversized mug shots at press conference but because the families of accused girls were not cooperating the sheriff said he had no choice. >> the fact that a 12-year-old child, she jumped and died as a result of jumping from a seem meant silo, and coupled by her mother's admission and by information and evidence we uncovered she had been bullied in the past. >> reporter: the sheriff is offering no apology. he says he has no regrets in how he handled the indicates. patti ann. patti ann: is the legal battle over? >> reporter: for two girls appears to be over in the short term. charges of felony aggravated assault have been dropped by the state. there could be more legal action ahead. the attorney for the 13-year-old girl, jose baez, saving he could file a lawsuit against the sheriff.

>> i've got some advice for him he should get a lawyer and a darn good one because he's going to need it. >> reporter: fox news has learned through the attorney for the 14-year-old girl that an agreement for dropping the charges against her, she has agreed to enter a diversion program and receive counseling. patti ann, back to you. >> steve harrigan, live in miami. thanks. jon: will the white house is reacting today as new information reseals from the -- reveals what the administration knew just days before the obamacare website launched, or didn't. and a bond hearing today for kennedy cousin michael skakel. we're hearing whether we i will be able to leave prison while awaiting retrial on murder charges.

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botched rollout. a brand new e-mail sheds some light. also, we are live in wichita where a gigantic jumbo jet touches down at a field for private aircraft. how did that happen, and can they get it off the ground again? we'll know in an hour. plus, could nuts be the key to a long, healthy life. >>? a new study on the very real benefits of this tasty snack. it's all "happening now." ♪ ♪ jon: well, a damaging e-mail related to obamacare lees the white house -- leaves the white house with a little more explaining to do. hello, i'm jon scott. of. alisyn: welcome to the second hour of "happening now," i'm patti ann brown in for jenna lee. fox gets an e-mail dated just days before the botched rollout of obamacare.

a senior technology official revealing in that e-mail that the white house had, quote: this fear that the web site wouldn't work properly, and now the white house is reacting. ed henry is live now with that story. hi, ed. you obtained this e-mail revealing that the white house knew more than they let on about the site troubles. >> reporter: it certainly suggests that, patti ann. henry chao is the tech official at cms, the health agency that you were referring to, and this was an e-mail he wrote on september 25th that's now been obtained by republican darrell issa on capitol hill, and he refers back to a meeting the day before, september 24th, one week before the october 1st rollout. when todd park -- who is the chief technology officer here at the white house -- and marilyn tavenner at cms were here yesterday, one of the things todd conveyed was this fear the white house has about hc.gov being unavailable. you'll remember, it was just a week ago today that the

president came into the briefing room for that news conference, said, a, he was surprised by these major problems that brought the web site down and, b be, he said, look, my critics call me a lot of things, but i'm not stupid. if we had known that there were going to be these problems, we would have delayed it. we wouldn't have gone forward. so this is yet another piece of evidence that raises questions about why if there were at least some warnings here a week out they didn't stop and rethink all this, patti ann. patti ann: the e-mailç also suggests that henry chao at cms was more worried about public relations than about getting consumers insurance? >> reporter: well, certainly in one piece of the e-mail it suggests they were worried about public relations. henry chao, in fairness to him, has been testifying on capitol hill and saying he's very concerned about how consumers are impacted by this new law, but in this one e-mail he attaches an image that shows you can't log on, he says that might scare people saying, quote: i am

picturing in my mind all the major print and online publications taking screen shots of what is below and ramping up the hyperbole about hc.gov not being functional. those images have been picked up by the media widely, and it has really built up a lot of criticism against the president. now, cms is pushing back on our story and saying, look, the e-mail's valid, but they say thatç the reason why there was trouble is, quote: we know now that we underestimated the volume of users who would attempt to log on to the system at the same time, and transfer, our testing -- >> reporter: what they're trying to say a lot of people were trying to log on to healthcare.gov, and they're taking that as a good sign in the white house behind me that there's a lot of demand for this product, obamacare. but the key, obviously, is they've got to get the web site

fixed so people can actually log on, actually enroll. and they believe in the long run the law's going to work. right now it's hard to see that light at the end of the tunnel. patti ann: ed henry, live at the white house, thanks. >> reporter: good to see you. jon: word today that the obamacare web site is improving with thousands still unable to complete the application process online. but the a number of states are using their own systems, and those exchanges are said to be doing well. so well, in fact, states like connecticut and kentucky are actually outpacing their enrollment estimates. all this as the president now seems to be shifting his strategy when it comes to the botched rollout. he's moving away from apologizing for the problems and toward blaming republicans for attempting to undermine his signature health care law. joining us now, michael barone, fox fuse contributor. we all remember when the president had that rather extraordinary news conference in the brady briefing room last week. he said, you know, the problems

with the web site, it's on me. then all of a sudden when he's talking to the new york -- i'm sorry, "the wall street journal," "wall street journal," he says it's the republicans, they're not invested in its success, and they're the real problem here. can he have it both ways? >> well, i think the answer's probably not. and certainly when you've seen his plunging job approval ratings in various polls, it doesn't seem to be working. i mean, you know, no republicans voted for this bill. no republicans hold high positions at cms which was in charge of designing the web site, in the hhs or in the white house staff. the people who were in charge of this were democrats and the administration. and i think you see at earn here that to -- a pattern here that to give the president his best reading of the facts as we know them, you've got an executive here who doesn't want to hear bad news. you just pointed to the henry chao memo a week before the scheduled rollout of the

obamacare web site pointing to problems. it's not the only pointing to problems that we've seen, has been with revealed over the last several weeks. this was going on for months, and yet they went ahead. and be we may recall the president's counsel, the white house counsel did not -- knew about the problem about selective enforcement by the irs directed against conservative organizations, but didn't tell the president. well, you know, go back to sergeant shriver, the brother-in-law of the late president kennedy, he said i want to know the bad news. he sent people out in the field, said people tell me this program's working. i want to know what's not working so i can fix it and make it better. president obama doesn't seem to take that approach. jon: well, and his trustworthiness has plummeted according to some of the latest polls. americans just don't think that the occupant of the oval office can be trusted. >> well, the president said 24 times, 29 times -- frequently in public appearances on the

campaign trail and from the white house that if you liked your insurance policy, you'd be able to keep it, if you liked your doctor, you'd be able to keep her or him. those statements don't seem to be justified by the facts. those statements turn out to have been false, and when the president makes such statements about a signature program of his own and they turn out to be false as proved by multiple experiences, he's going to suffer significant credibility problem, and that's what we're seeing this the public opinion polls -- in the public opinion polls. it's always hard to get back and recover from the public a reputation for telling the truth and for being reliable on major issues of importance. jon so we are seven weeks into the rollout of this thing. we've got eight days left in november, full days, and the president says it's going to be up and running, the web site, it's going to to be all good -- well, mostly good -- by the 1st of december. what happens if that, be that

promise isn't kept? i don't know, i'm not a tech expert, but it doesn't look good. >> yeah. now, it's only the web site will be working just perfectly and smoothly on december 1st. i don't know whether that's going to be the case or not. as you say, i think most people would say it's unlikely, and if it's not working, you're going to have some real problems. because people have to sign up by december 15th in order to have health insurance policies that take effect on january 1st. and if they're not able to do so, you're going to be leaving a lot of people in the lurch and unprotected by health insurance. you're going to see a lot of stories about that. you're going to see, you know, i voted for the president, but i'm disappointed in him coming out again and again. you know, it's plain in retrospect that this administration did not do an adequate job of performing this quite difficult task, one must concede. but they had 42 months from the

passage of obamacare til the october 1st rollout in order to plan for it. you know, back in the old days the pentagon was built in 18 months. of it's still the world's largest office building 70 years later. the government just doesn't seem to be able to work that fast. jon: took less time to win world war ii. michael barone, a fox news contributor, thanks. >> thank you. patti ann: a pair of reports raising serious questions about the nation's airports. according to two industry trade groups, the long lines, flight delays and endless waits for luggage usually associated with the holidays could be the new ports point to a failure to invest in airports and the aviation system and a projected increase in air travel to about 400 million passengers over the next 20 years. the author of one of the studies suggests a fix, raising a federal passenger facility tax. while the other group points to limiting baggage fees and raise the tax airlines pay on tickets as well as stripping the faa of

its responsibility for implementing a $40 billion aviation control system. jon: also major developments to tell you about in the crash of asiana airlines 214 back in san francisco back in july. finish be airport officials say an automated system designed to alert key managers to an emergency failed due to a software glitch. instead, those on duty had to call more than 100 key officials one by one as the crisis unfolded, according to that report. it's not clear what effect the failure had on the overall response to the crash. that crash killed three people, injured about 180 others. patti ann: and a jetblue flight makes an emergency landing after an evacuation slide opens after takeoff.ç the plane was heading from fort be meyers, florida, to boston when the chute partially deployed inside the cabin. >> we heard a loud bang, and we -- i saw people looking up towards the front, and i knew something happened, but it looked to me like something

happened in the cockpit. i couldn't tell. but i think what it was was that chute inflated. everyone was pretty calm, and they got us down quickly, but it was a weird dealing. like we knew something wasn't right. patti ann: no injuries were reported, but passengers were forced to use the rear exit. jon: and another bizarre aviation story that we're following right now, this time in kansas. officials at jabbar rah airport in wichita tell fox news they expect a gigantic 747 cargo jet will take off about 40, maybe 50 minutes from now. the pilots apparently landed at theúw[ong airport last night. the jet has been stuck since then because the runway they are able to take off from or the runway there sitting next to is not designed for a plane of this size. the runway is too short. the largest cargo jet in the

world was hauling parts for boeing's dreamliner, it was supposed to land 8 miles away at the air force base. we'll let you know if this dream lifter, it's called, is actually going to get off the ground this hour. patti ann: oh, my. well, we are getting new information on a security deal with afghanistan that could keep u.s. troops in that country through the year 2024. national correspondent, security correspondent jennifer griffin is live at the pentagon with that story for us. hi, jennifer. >> reporter: hi, patti ann. well, president karzai of afghanistan threw another curveball at his american counterparts today when he announced that the loyal jirga, that meeting of tribal elders in kabul, that he would not sign a security agreement with the u.s. until after the presidential election in april. that's when karzai himself has to step down as president. in essence, karzai is delaying a decision the white house said needed to be made by the end of october if it's going to keep

thousands of troops in afghanistan. in a speech to afghan elders, karzai also said, quote: my trust with america is not good. i don't trust them, and they don't trust me. during the past ten years i have fought with them, and they have made propaganda against me. u.s. troops need certain protections including immunity from prosecution if they are going to stay in afghanistan. the white house released the letter that president obama sent to president karzai yesterday. in it there is no apology per se for past u.s. actions in afghanistan, the letter does say, however, quote: >> r eporter: according to recent nonpartisan research studies conducted at harvard and brown

universities, 2,292 americans have been killed in afghanistan, nearly 18,000 wounded if you don't include the hundreds of thousands of troops suffer from traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress. the wars have cost the tax pair between -- taxpayer between $4-$6 trillion according to estimates adding about $2 trillion to the u.s. debt or about 20% of the last 12 years of debt. according to a harvard researcher, the legacy of decisions taken during the iraq and afghan wars will dominate future budgets for decades to come. patti ann? patti ann: jennifer griffin live at pent gone, thanks. jon: a fox news alert, and it could be unprecedented in the senate. senate majority leader harry reid has called for a vote on what is commonly known as the nuclear option to. democrats are upset that some of president obama's nominees have

been upheld in the senate because it takes 60 votes to get some of those nominees approved. harry reid wants it a simple majority. he's trying to change the senate rules. they are voting now, we'll update you. okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu.

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jon: well, they call it the nuclear option for a reason, and harry reid, the senate majority leader, has decided to go nuclear. it's about as rare as a nuclear bomb, but they are voting right now in the senate. harry reid, the majority leader, has complained about republicans' endless use of the filly buster on executive branch appointments and nominations. filibuster, as you probably know, is a historic procedural move that lets a member extend the discussion long enough to delay or stop a proposal. so right now in the senate it takes 60 votes to end a filibuster. senator reid wants to change it that a simple majority, or 51 votes, can do so.

changing the rules, though, of s a very risky move. it could hurt democrats next time today become the minority. in fact, when they were the minority, he complained that the nuclear option would be a very bad idea. but now that he's in charge if is able to get the senate to approve the change, it could set off a huge battle for the gop. this is some unresidented territory here in the -- unprecedented territory here in the senate. we'll let you know what happens. patti ann? patti ann: a fox news alert now, kennedy cousin michael skakel was just granted bail this morning, and he could be released moments from now while he awaits a new trial in a decades-old case, the 1975 murder of martha mocksly. -- moxley. hi, david lee miller. >> reporter: hi, patti ann. he's been behind bars now for 11 years. the hearing to set him freectqe

judge set a bond at $1.2 million. he also imposed a number of conditions. among them, michael skakel has to wear a gps tracking eyes, he has to -- device, he cannot have any contact with the moxley family x he periodically has to report to authorities. now, the hearing, as i said, lasted for 30 minutes. the defense argued that since his conviction has been overturned, michael skakel is technically no longer a convicted felon. they were asking for $500,000 bond. they explained that there were a number of reasons he would be eligible for bail. the defense says he has one of the most recognizable faces in america, he wants to be reunitedded with his son and also underscored that the case, in his view, was very weak. listen. >> no dna evidence, your honor. no fingerprints.

no trace evidence. no eyewitnesses. the key witness in this case came forward after watching a tv segment offering a reward. >> reporter: now, the prosecution did not challenge the right of michael skakel to receive bond, but they argued that an amount of $500,000 was simply too low. the prosecution mentioned a figure of some $2 million. as i said at the outset, the judge decided on $1.2 million bond. and patti ann, in just a few moments' time, we expect michael skakel to exit from the building behind me. for the first time, he will be free in 11 years. he awaits a new trial. patti ann: david lee miller live this connecticut, thanks. jon: well, the glitch chi web site and broken promises not the only problems for obamacare. why married people might now be penalized when they sign up.

we're live with that. also a new study finds be tree nuts are a real wonder food. how they could cut your risk of dying from some very serious diseases. that's next. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] this is brad. his day of coaching begins with knee pain, when... [ man ] hey, brad, want to trade the all-day relief of two aleve for six tylenol? what's the catch? there's no catch. you want me to give up my two aleve for six tylenol? no. for my knee pain, nothing beats my aleve.

patti ann: right now a new study on the benefits of eating nuts. researchers find that folks who consume just one ounce of tree nuts every day dramatically cut their risk of dying from a thurm of causes such as cancer and heart disease, some by as much as 25%. the nut eaters enjoyed longer life spans even if they didn't exercise, avoided fruits and vegetables and were overweight. dr. richard fur shine is the director of the fur shine center for medicine this new york city. thank you for joining us.

>> thank you. patti ann: one ounce cuts your risks by 25%, cancer by 10%, diabetes or lung disease by 20%. but the editor of the new england journal of medicine concedes that in his words, quote: people who eat nuts have healthier lifestyles and may take the stairs instead of an elevator or work out harder at the gym. despite the fact they tried to factor in some of those factors. so are these percentages a little too high? >> well, i think we do need to take into account the fact that people are going to be healthier, choose nuts or seeds as part of an overall healthy strategy; exercise, reducing stress and eating more fruits and vegetables. but what was interesting about this study is that they really looked at 118,000 people, tracked them over 30 years. there are a lot of variables. and what they found is irregardless of whether someone didn't exercise, smoked, was overweight, that nuts still had a beneficial effect. and the more thoughts you ate --

nuts you ate, the more you benefited. patti ann: yeah. they really focused on tree nuts. peanuts are in the study, but they didn't have as dramatic an effect. >> right. so what we do know is that nuts -- which are very high in fat, by the way, some are 80% fat -- have a beneficial type of fat. many nuts contain omega 3 fatty as sits, unsaturated fats, but they also contain a lot of other nutrients, fiber,ç minerals whh may benefit the heart as well. so there's a lot going on in this study even though peanuts -- which are not true nuts -- were not as beneficial, the fact is that tree nuts really were the stars of the show. patti ann: interesting stuff. and there was partial funding group that is a nut foundation -- [laughter] doesn't mean there were nuts in the foundation. but they say that they did not let that interfere with their

study at all. anyway, thank you so much for joining us doctor, richard fir shine. jon: nuclear talks with iran running into headwinds, why negotiators do not expect any movement until after this country celebrates thanksgiving. should the u.s. give tehran a chance, or is this just another stalling tactic? kt mcfarlane will be along to weigh in on that. plus, major legal fallout for a college football star. breaking details, next.ç i'm tony siragusa and i'm training guys who leak a little,

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jon: well a marriage penalty of sorts could be the latest problem for obamacare as couples who just live together get a much better deal than those who walk down the aisle and say i-do. molly henneberg live in washington to explain that. molly if. >> reporter: obama care subsidies, taxpayer dollars given to people to help them pay for health insurance are based on income and the federal poverty levels. the less you make the more money you can get from the government. so let's look at the numbers. if you're an individual and you make above $45,960 you will not qualify for subsidies but below that you will. if a married couple together makes above $62,040 you will not qualify for subsidies, but if you are below that you will. couples living together, not

married applying as provides r individuals and both qualify for thousands of dollars in subsidies per year. if you put the graphic back up there are married and combined salaries were above $62,040 they couldn't get any government help. republicans say the obamacare law shoulding fixed so it doesn't discourage marriage. >> i think there are couples look, in a world to marriage to many people just a piece of paper, i think they would say this piece of paper will financially damage us. it will make it very difficult for us. and so if you have a couple, particularly one without children, the advantage of that couple is to remain unmarried and just live together. >> reporter: others say this wasn't meant to be a marriage penalty. just what happens when the government ties any kind of subsidies, such as food stamps or housing assistance to federal poverty levels. >> i don't think there is any reason to believe anybody was trying to discourage marriage. it just comes from the common

sense axiom that two people, married, can live together more cheaply than two people living separately. >> he says this is an example of an unintended consequence of the obamacare law. jon? jon: molly henneberg, in washington. another interesting development. thank you, molly. patti ann: well, right now new developments in the nfl bullying scandal. miami dolphins and richie incognito are getting set to meet with an independent arbitrator who will decide the suspended player's immediate future with the team. under the collective agreement with the players union his suspension can not last more than four games. the troubles plaguing the dolphins may go beyond bullying allegedly of jonathan martin. a new report says richie incognito and at least one other player harass ad team employee making fun of his ethnic background and make crude jokes about his wife. mike pouncey, one of

incognito's, one of his closest friends, the two got together to watch the dolphins game against the san diego chargers. pouncey missed game because of illness says incognito is anxious to rejoin the team. jon: a new case rocking college football. they are investigating florida state quarterback jamis winston in allegations with a. the state attorney's office is in contact with the alleged victim. arthel neville. >> there was alleged arm-twisting not to talk but apparently that didn't work. we'll tell you about a report 90 minutes ago coming across tmz.com, that the accuser left florida state university last week and is no longer taking places there. fox news has yet to independently confirm this. meanwhile the state attorney general's office there is planning to interview the alleged rape victim soon. assistant state attorney georgia cappleman says she will make no

decisions before speaking to the alleged victim. she wants sufficient evidence before deciding whether or not to prosecute. however she says her office does expect to reach a conclusion on this case in the next week or two. so let me tell you right now about the statement from the victim's family. it alleges that scott ungolo from tallahassee pd told the victim's attorney, to think, quote long and hard about this case because tallahassee was, a quote, big football town. the claim continues with the family saying it had difficulty obtaining dna and blood samples from the incident. now in a two weeks this case will be 12 months old. state attorney with meggs told cbssports.com last week this case was a cluster actually because the year-long gap before his office was aware of the situation. by the way the alleged rape occurred december 7th, 2012, when according to police reports a female student from tampa bay was sexually assaulted sometime

around 1:30 or 2:00 in the morning. the incident was report ad few hours later around reportedly winston was not identified bit alleged victim until later after that. the accused attacker, james miss winston, florida state quarterback and heisman trophy hopeful, by the way his attorneys die nye the sexual assault claims. winston has not been charged and is not expected to speak with the state attorney. quickly jon, i want to get back to the claims that the tallahassee pd try to dissuade the alleged victim's family from pursuing this case. you know what, jon? let me jump out of this. i understand we have breaking news coming across. basically this case will continue. we'll keep you posted. okay? jon: arthel neville, thank you. history made in the u.s. senate, just now the so-called nuclear option has passed. the vote wrapping up just moments ago. it weakens the ability of the

minority party to filibuster and it curbs right now the republican ability to block president obama's nominees for various positions. however, if the rolls change and sooner or later you know they will, if republicans assend to the majority in the united states senate, all of a sudden democrats are going to find themselves in the minority and, they will be unable, apparently, to filibuster, to block appointments and, and bill that is they do not like. harry reid complained when he was in the minority that this was a bad idea but now that he is the majority leader of the u.s. senate he has essentially invoked the nuclear option. we'll be back with more coverage just ahead.

jon: fox news alert. and a senate institution that has been in place, we believe,

since 1789 has just been changed on a 52-48 vote. senate majority leader harry reid has invoked the so-called nuclear option. that vote wrapped up moments ago. it makes the ability to filibuster by the minority party a lot more difficult. it curbs the republican's ability to block president obama's nominees to various federal posts. we understand that this ruling does not affect the ability to filibuster supreme court nominees, but other appeals court and federal judicial court nominees can go through on a simple majority votes. republicans are howling but they're in the minority right now, if that changes, democrats may rue this day, but they have voted to invoke "the nuclear option" and change the filibuster rules in the u.s. senate. patti ann: right now, the faa releasing an alarming new report

saying pilots basic flying skills are getting rusty because they rely too much on autopilot. they're linking the problem to the incidents like the asiana crash in san francisco in july and other recent incidents. doug mckelway is live in washington with this story. hi, doug. >> reporter: hi, mattie ann. the faa administrator is announcing changes to this announced october 5th. he is announcing as we speak. the changes are five years in the making and they stem from hard lessons learned from several recent crashes most recent, the kogen air flight 3407 in 2009. that plane was descending into buffalo on autopilot in icing conditions, when the pilot who was young and inexperienced and fatigued from overwork and lack of rest, disengaged autopilot and took control himself. the stick shaker which warned impending stall but the pilot reacted pulling aircraft up,

slowing sped instead of pushing down which he should have done. the plane winged over plummeted to the ground killing all aboard. there is growing concern increased automation may less on pilot effectiveness in rare emergency circumstances like that. new training for crosswind takeoffs and landings and better runway safety rules as well. the faa says that air carriers will have five years to comply with these new rules. that will allow time for software upgrades in flight simulation technology. it is expected to cost the aviation industry up to $353 million to make these changes but, the estimated cost benefit is nearly down that. so good news for air carriers. and passengers who fly them. patti ann? patti ann: doug mckelway, live in washington, thanks. >> reporter: you bet. jon: a fox news alert out of wichita, kansas. you're taking a live look there at the dream lifter.

officials at the airport say this mass sirf 747 cargo jet is going to take off any moment now. it has been stuck since it landed there last night when the pilots touched down at the wrong airport. the plane has not been able to take off till now because the runway at jabara is really too short for a plane of this size. let's talk about it with robert mark, he is a commercial pilot and publisher of jet whine.com. robert, everybody is wondering how do pilots set down at the wrong airport? >> well it goes back a bit to the automation they were just talking about just a moment ago. we often don't make the jump from automation to looking out the windows, down in that area jabara, and mcconnell, the runways both run in the same direction, north-south, they were looking for a north-south runway. they're not from that area and they picked out what they

thought was the right airport and they just didn't look else. the equipment would have told them they were at the wrong place. jon: we have an aerial view of the two airports side by side. they have kind of look-alike. we perhaps can get the graphic on the screen but i know as a light plane pilot, you know when you're coming in at night they do kind of look-alike, even though the runway at the air force base there on the left is much, much longer than the one at jabara on the right. so what happens now? they will try to get this thing off the ground. normally it needs 9,000 feet of runway when fully loaded. they have only got 6,000 feet. what do they do? >> well, most likely they will off-load a lot of fuel that was on board because that is only thing you can do to lighten the load. or remove the cargo. again, the, that particular airplane is designed to carry fuselages for 77s. my guess they're not going to want to take a fuselage out if

there was one inside. the only other option is lighten the load by taking off a the lot of fuel. if they get the load light enough it will get off in 6,000 feet. jon: the good news is they have a cold front coming through. the wind is roaring in out of the north. the runway that they are on is aligned to the north. that will help them lift off. so the air is getting colder. that is more dense and helps the engines. helps add lift to this thing. >> you could be good in ground school. jon: you know, that may be my second career. we'll see. robert mark, we'll keep an eye on this thing. if it takes off, we'll let our viewers watch it with us but i'm glad i'm not the pilot behind the yoke of this particular plane. roberts thank you. >> you're welcome. >> and a fox news alert right now. the so-called nuclear option has passed in the senate. that wrote wrapping up moments ago as we've been telling you. it weakens filibusters.

it cuts the republican party's ability to block president obama's nominees for example. it cuts the required number of votes needed from 60 to 51. and we'll have more on that, stay with us. >> we're in brian kilmeade's studio for his radio show. >> he down know we're here so be quiet. >> we're using our golf voice is at the moment. what is coming up? >> at top of the hour we'll talk to reince priebus about the new republican strategy to dole with obamacare. >> senator john thune wants to get rid of a lot of carveouts in the law. we'll ask him what he is planning to do. >> brian has a new book about george washington. says it is very good. >> says he is famous too. that is what he says. >> see you at the top of the hour.

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jon: "happening now," all kind of political developments in washington, d.c., including this historic vote to invoke "the nuclear option." as we understand it, it means that from now on the republicans will not be able to filibuster some of the president's legislative proposals because it takes only a majority vote now to end a filibuster. juan williams, our fox news political analyst, is with us to talk about that. and one other surprise we want to mention in a minute. first off the top, 1789, was the first filibuster in the senate, something like that. it bows back that far. it has been part of the senate forever. now harry reid and the democrats have voted to change it. juan, how big of a deal is this? >> this is just a big deal. just from the historical perspective you provided, jon, is indication how big of a deal it is, and also indication of

level of frustration the democrats feel at the moment. in the last few weeks you had three nominees to the d.c. court of appeals turned down by the republicans and in some cases they said it had nothing to do with qualifications but simply, an effort to prevent a, what they view as a liberal president obama from tilting the composition of the court in his favor. and that d.c. court of appeals, you should know makes lots of decisions about key regulatory agencies here in washington and how government actually functions. so they feel right now, the democrats feel that right now the republicans have gone over the pale. in fact be republicans had agreed back in june not to, you know, force a filibuster on anymore nominees. they broke that deal. now the democrats have come back and they have, as you pointed out made history today by saying that they are no longer, took a simple majority to change the rules that had been in place since the 1700's. jon: so what happens when the shoe is on the other foot and democrats are in the minority?

>> that is the key point here. and i think you had reluctance on the part of some democrats especially, the two women from, female senators from california, who are so concerned about abortion rights. they were reluctant to change the rules because what happens when the shoe's on the other foot? but right now there is such anger among the democrats that they were able to convince, you know, they were able to convince the reluctant senators to come along. when the shoe is on the other foot, this is going to be limited in large part to judicial nominees. hopefully not have to do with legislative efforts that you can still filibuster legislative effort like an abortion issue. but your point is well-taken. what happens if, when the republicans have the majority, they go beyond this and change it so it affect the not just nominees but also legislative efforts? jon: hmmm. juan, we had hoped to have you on a little bit earlier in the program but you were a little busy this morning. you were at the white house.

you want to tell us about that. >> sure. jon. what happened a white house invite ad small groupjournallists over to talk with the president. i can't tell you what the president said. that is off the record. but i met with other senior officials at the white house, i can tell you they are in full fight mode over the affordable care act right now and, what you hear from these senior officials is, you know, they're concerned about what happened with insurance companies. they wish the insurance companies hadn't sent out the cancellation notices. if they had, simply call them renewals. and, they feel right now, as if you know, they had a major systems failure, major management failure. and they're trying to get back on track. their big concern right now is with people who had those cancellation notices and making sure those people feel they have been taken care of. they feel they have to turn that around, as the first step in trying to repair the damage that's been done to this president. jon: fair to say they're also trying to change the messaging here. >> absolutely. i mean, you know there is

frustration. i think that's clear from everybody who i was talking to this morning at the white house, is frustration. they feel, even if you don't get the websites working, and they expect the websites will work. they will get a sustainable, pool of people, maybe not as many people into the marketplace as they had projected but they will get a sustainable pool. they're frustrated with the way that this has been portrayed in the media because they it has done some good. bill clinton coin even get a vote on proposed health care reform. 100 years this, is hard work as one of them said. jon: juan williams just out of meeting with president obama. juan, thank you. >> you're well come.

>> an antique motorcycle that was stolen back in 1967 is back with the rightful owner. the 1953 model was swiped out of don duvall's backyard.

he said the bike may look different than he remembers. after all it was nearly half a century but can't wait to take it out on the open road and ride it again. >> that is cool. it is 60 years old. >> thanks for joining us. american's news headquarters starts right now. thank you guys, we are watching a airplane take off. new zoo video in wichita, kansas. it is an atlas airplane it is really big and on a runway too little to take off. >> the plane bound from mcconnell air force base and missed its mark 12 miles. it needs a runway 9,000 feet long and this runway in